Bill Cheek - World Scanner Report

Publisher/Editor: W. D. Cheek, Sr. aka '7>. Rigormortis” _ V2N8: September, 1992

The WORLD SCANNER REPORT

A Journal of VHF-UHF Scanner Technology 6 Engineering ISSN 1061-9240

Published at COMMtronics Engineering; PO Box 262478; San Diego, CA 92196; Copyright (c) 1991-2 <A11 Rights Reserved> $4.oo

SOMETHING NEW HAS BEEN ADDED

To ease the strain on your tired eyes

About time we got a printing press, huh? Actually, we
went one step better: laser printer! Cindy (our
Administrator) has the warmest hearted sister you could
ever want, bless her heart! Lori PreFontaine, of Mesa,
Arizona, won a laser printer in a sales promotion where
she works and donated it to the cause of the World
Scanner Report. You're feasting your eyes on the
results of Lori's generosity. Thank you, Lori, from ALL
of us up here at the WSR Headshed.

THE YEAR OF THE INTERFACE CONTINUES
HB-232 Has Been Released for Charley Testing_

The now famous HB-232 Scanner/Computer Interface
continues its development and progress through Charley
testing. The first units were shipped on August 17,
1992, some two weeks ahead of schedule and about two
weeks later than we were hoping for. If you ordered and
have not received an HB-232 Kit yet, be sure to contact
us so we can initiate a tracer. All standing orders have
been filled as of press time and a backlog is not expected
before Fall when the formal announcement is made to the
rest of the world.

LAST CHANCE TO GET THE SPECIAL
CHARLEY TEST DISCOUNT PRICE!

Effective October 1, 1992, the Public Release retail price
of the HB-232 Kit will be $169.95 + $5 S&H. There's
only a short time left to take advantage of the pre¬
announcement Charley Tester Discount at $129.95 + $5
S&H. All Charley Testers will receive the Release
Version of the HB-232 Program and any changes to the
documentation at no cost, if downloaded from the
Hertzian Intercept BBS or at $5 S&H if a disk and
printed copies of document changes are desired. Please
specify disk size when ordering. The HB-232 is the
hottest thing to come to scanning since scanners came to
radio! This is the time to get in on the ground floor of
what has to be the wave of the future for serious
scanning! Think about it: I confided an issue or two ago
how shortwave listeners have a measly 30 MHz of RF

spectrum to manage. Scannists have 1275 MHz of
spectrum to deal with, or 42.5 times as much! There
really is no effective way to manage all that RF space
without the aid of a computer. The HB-232 Scanner-
Computer Interface is the best and the closest thing yet
to the ideal way to pursue the Scanning Hobby.

If you are undecided because the HB-232 is still in a
"testing" phase, then stay tuned because we'll publish the
best of the favorable and unfavorable reports from the
Charley Testers as they come in.

GIRL, 15, ASSEMBLES AN HB-232 BOARD

When I was writing the Assembly Instructions for the
HB-232 Board, I gave my 15-yr old daughter, Ali, a
draft copy of the instructions and pointed her to the parts
bins with "orders from headquarters" to pull all the
necessary parts from the Parts List and to assemble the
Board according to the written instructions. I made her
up a work-station on the opposite side of the shop where
I work, out of sight and out of mind. Her work area
consisted of bench space, a hobbyist-type soldering
pencil and basic handtools. Nothing sophisticated.
Furthermore, I have not had her do much of this kind of
work in the past, though I have given her marginal
opportunity to solder and work with electronic parts.
Ali's experience level is certainly equal to or less than
that of the typical hobbyist. Purposefully, I stayed away
from her side of the shop during her work time. She
came to me several times with questions about my
written instructions, which I answered, short, sweet,
direct and to the point. About three hours later, Ali
returned with a completed Board that looked pretty
darned good! We connected it between an XT/clone
computer and my PRO-2004; fired things up and the
danged thing worked perfectly the first time out!

While this is certainly credits Ali's attention to detail and
her developing electronic assembly skills, this was really
a test of the clarity and pertinence of written instructions.
This and similar subsequent tests enabled me to "debug"
my writing so that non-technical people can follow
simple, bite-sized steps to successful assembly of the
HB-232,. There's more to the HB-232 Project than just
assembling the Board, but this will give you an idea.

FIRST 3rd PARTY PROGRAM
ALREADY AVAILABLE FOR HB-232 !

An early sign of a great product is the quantity and
quality of 3rd-party support that emerges for it.
Interesting that the HB-232 Scanner/Computer
Interface hasn't been officially announced yet and
already DataFile, Inc. rises to the challenge of setting
standards of performance for those to follow. It is with
great pleasure that we offer DataFile's press release:

DataFile proudly announces their newest software product:

SHERLOCK

A NEW ERA IN ADVANCED COMPUTER-AIDED SCANNING

* High performance software for Commtronics Engineering's
B-232 Scanner/Computer Interface system.

Reuse Sherlock’s log filets) : Look for additional frequencies that

may not have been present during a previous session.

.Create " bir die" fi les: Create files of unwanted frequencies

generated internally by the scanner. Using this file, Sherlock

ignores any of these frequencies when it finds activity.

AND T HERE'S MORE! Sherlock's On-Screen Display includes:

* Current frequency

* Search loop count

* Low and high frequency search limits

* Starting date, time, and elapsed time

* Last new frequency, date, time and elapsed time

* Last active frequency, date, time and elapsed time

* Active window with the latest 15 frequencies, date, time,

activity count (hit count) and whether or not the frequency
is new.

* Session count of: frequencies on file at start of session;
new frequency records added to file; total frequency
records on file; active frequencies already .on file; with
new and active frequencies found

* The "Intelligent Frequency Finder" capable of building a
virtually unlimited file of up to 1 billion active frequencies, disk
space permitting.

* A fully automated and unattended process for searching
frequency band widths for new frequency activity without having
to stare at numbers, take notes or press buttons.

* No degradation of the performance of the scanner.

* An evolutionary approach to search and store but much easier!

NO more taking notes, NO more pressing buttons and NO more
time limitations. Search for new frequency activity
UNATTENDED, hands off, for UNLIMITED periods of time.

How Sherlock works; When a frequency is found by the scanner
and is active for approximately a tenth of a second, Sherlock
INSTANTLY looks through a list of frequencies to determine
whether a record of the active frequency exists. If the active
frequency is not found, Sherlock adds the new frequency, time and
date to the file. If Sherlock has a record of the active frequency,
the existing record is updated with the current time, date and total
number of activities of the frequency. Once the file is updated,
Sherlock automatically commands the scanner to continue
searching for the next active frequency. The real news here is
Sherlock does all of this IN A FRACTION OF A SECOND!

Prints summary report : Summary report provides complete session
data and lists either all of the frequencies or just the newly found
frequencies from the log file.

View the log file in a xBase editor: Reassign channel numbers and
filter characters for use by the HB-232 software.

Auto-Convert log file to a compatible HB-232 auto-program file:
Automatically load all of the frequencies or just the newly found
frequencies into the scanner using the HB-232 software.

SYSTEM REOUIREMENTS : PRO-2004, 2005 or 2006 scanner;
COMMtronics Engineering’s HB-232 Scanner/Computer
Interface hardware & software; IBM or compatible computer
using MS/PC-DOS ver 3.1 or higher; 640K RAM; hard disk; serial
port (COM 1 or 2); IBM/Epson compatible printer (optional).

Sherlock can also be run in a demonstration mode for those not
equipped with the scanner or a HB-232 Interface system. The
demonstration mode "emulates" Sherlock's capabilities.

Sherlock sells for only $39.95 plus $3.50 for shipping and
handling and is complete with documentation on disk. For printed
documentation, add $5.00. A demo-only version is available for
$7.50 which is applicable towards purchase. The demo version is
fully functional except there's a ten (10) minute runtime limit and a
log file limit of fifty (50) records. Documentation for the demo
version is included on disk, but add $5.00 for printed docs.

World Scanner Report readers who order by October 1, 1992 may
purchase Sherlock for only $34.95 plus $3.50 for shipping and
handling. Documentation is included on disk. Add $5.00 for
printed documentation. See above for the demo-only version.
Send check or money order with a mention of the WSR to
DataFile, Inc., P.O. Box 20111, Dept. WSR, St. Louis, Missouri,
63123 BE SURE TO SPECIFY DISK SIZE (3.5" or 5.25").

EDITOR'S NOTE: The Sherlock demo & limited run-time
programs including docs will be available on the Hertzian
Intercept BBS in File Section #3, VHF/UHF & SCANNERS. You
can download these files at no charge, in one of two ways: each
individual program, one at a time, or both at one time which are
ZIPPED into a compressed file archive for faster transfers. The
names of the files are: SHDEMDOC.EXE and SHDEMQ20.EXE
and the ZIPped archive, SHERLOCK. ZIP. Download either the
first two or the third , but not all three. If you try and like
Sherlock, drop a note mentioning the WSR and your payment to
DataFile, Inc. for the unlimited, uninhibited version.

The "WORLD SCANNER REPORT" (c) 1991-2; V2N8: September, 1992; Page 2

DO YOU WANT TO RENEW YET?

You might, especially since there's only two issues left in 1992.
Check the expiration date on your mailing label and if it says
" NOV92 ". you might want to consider an early renewal before you
forget and get caught up in the flow of the holiday season. Use the
handy subscription blank on the inside of the back page of this
issue and get reneyval out of your hair if you're going to anyway.

MASTERCARD & VISA NOW ACCEPTED

We have received authorization to accept MasterCard and Visa for
payment of merchandise and subscriptions. If you choose this
method of payment, PLEASE give your name as it appears on the
card; the expiration date of the card; the account number AND
vour signature authorizing the debit against your card. Many
mail order firms are loose in some of these details, but we had to
work hard and pay a lot of money to get this authorization, so we'll
be doing tilings by the book. Please don't ask us to do otherwise.

PHONE LINE & TIMES FOR VOICE ORDERS

Lf we have your signature on file, we'll be happy to accept renewals
and other MasterCard/Visa purchases by telephone during the
weekday hours of 1:30pm - 5:30pm, PST at (619) 578-9247. Use
this same number for FAX orders at ANY TIME other than the
above hours. You can also make purchases via the Hertzian
Intercept BBS at the same number at ANY TIME other than the
Voice Hours given above. Again, for all credit card orders, we
must have a signature on file. FAX is fine, but BBS and Voice
require your advance signature, please. By the way, this voice line
is for orders ONLY. We cannot and DO NOT provide hobby
information and modification/hacking assistance by telephone.

HERTZIAN INTERCEPT BBS AVAHLABLITY
IMPROVED: PLEASE TRY AGAIN

The availability of the Hertzian Intercept BBS has been limited in
the past because of our need to use the computer for production and
to answer BBS inquiries. We've made some changes, by adding a
dedicated computer for the BBS, a Cumulus 386SX/16 with an 85-
Mb hard drive. Then, we installed an electronic mail transfer
feature on one of the production computers to allow us to call the
BBS, more or less like you do, and to download all the recent mail
& traffic for sorting, reply and uploading back to the BBS without
tying it up. The electronic transfers take place in seconds as
opposed to the hours it used to take to have the BBS down for reply
and response. Now, early-to-mid morning hours of 6:00am-
11:00am and all the evening hours are available to you. NOTE:
The BBS is still down every day between 1:30pm-5,:30pm,
weekdays for voice orders and weekends for maintenance . We're
desperately trying to get a third phone line in here so the BBS can
go full time. Unfortunately, the telephone company here is rather
persnickety and it will be a while yet before we get that third line.
In the interim, you'll find the BBS to be much more accessible than
in the past. It's there for your use; feel invited.

The Hertzian Intercept BBS has added a file area for hams, SWLs
and scannists alike; Area #14 {Radio Mods/Hacks: Untested ??),
which contains 750+ files on a wide range of ham, shortwave and
scanner radios. I have not reviewed most of these hacks, but you're
welcome to check 'em out. The Hertzian Intercept BBS also
sports a general interest message base called RADIOJTEK
(Message Area #8) which is open to technical talk of all sorts,
types and kinds about radio technology. One neat thing about this
Conference is that it is networked to several other BBS's and is not
limited to only my views of radio. The HB-232 Scanner/Computer
Interface is backed by a technical support forum which is
networked to the same BBS's as the RADIOTEK conference. If
you're building an HB-232 or thinking about it, this conference
might be for you! The BBS's which are linked to the Hertzian
Intercept with the RADIO TEK & HB-232_C message areas are
as follows: (You can reach me on any of them.)

The Feedhorn BBS Los Angeles, CA (818) 907-1458
Tri-State Data Exchange Dubuque, IA (319) 5564536 _

This list is expected to grow, so stay tuned for updates. Meanwhile
don't forget the FidoNet SHORTWAVE and SCANRADIO echoes
(Message Conferences) where all serious radioists congregate to
tell lies and spin yams of great deeds in radio history. My offer
still stands to provide a list of FidoNet BBS’s for your Area Code
for only the price of a SASE and a loose, extra stamp. Or, inquire
on the Hertzian Intercept BBS for free!

THE COMPUTER CORNER

With the coming of the HB-232 Scanner/Contputer Interface, we
need a regular column just for the basics of computing. It won't be
deeply involved, but I realize there's a lot of people who are not
computer-literate, but who are ready to see the value of computers
to radio. Jose of New Jersey expressed his notion that all IBM
computers were made by IBM and priced out of reach! True, that
all IBM computers are made by IBM and if new or nearly so, really
are expensive. But, the buzz-words of interest here are
"IBM/compatible" or "IBM/clone". An IBM/compatible or clone
is NOT made by IBM and need not be expensive, especially one
that's ideal for basic radio needs. My XT/clone cost all of $200
with a 40-Mb hard drive. Granted that it's not ideal for a lot of
today’s high powered software, but it's adequate for the HB-232
and for most of the record-keeping associated with Hobby Radio .
But let's chat briefly about different kinds of computers so you can
relate to the differences among them and avoid the royal shaft.

There are TWO major aspects of computers which distinguish one
from others: (1) the Central Processor Unit (CPU) computer chip,
(2) the disk operating sustem (DOS). Within these domains are
many classes/types of personal computers: CP/M; Z-80, Apple II,
III; Macintosh & Lisa; Commodore VIC-20, 64 & 128; Amiga,
Radio Shack's old TRS-80 & Color Computer series; Atari, TI-99,
Adam, HeathKit, IBM-PC & compatibles, loosely including XT,
AT, PS-1 & PS-2. The latter class, which we will refer to as
IBM/clones comprises a huge spectrum of machines, ranging from
the early PCjr & PC to the XT, AT and PS-series. Included in the
PS-series are computers with the Intel 386SX, 386DX, 486SX &
486DX CPU chips. Don't worry if you are contused.

The "WORLD SCANNER REPORT" (c) 1991-2; V2N8: September, 1992; Page 3

Here's the meat. Unless you have an emotional involvement with
old and ancient computers, you will do very well to avoid the
following:Commodores, TRS-80, Apple II, III & Lisa; all CP/M's,
including the Z-80, Atari, Commodore and Amiga. Avoid like the
plague, the Timex-Sinclair, TI-99 and Adam computers. In fact,
you really should stay away from ALL but one general type of
computer with possible exception of the Macintosh, and frankly, I
don't recommend a Mac either. Say what?

Ok, ok, ok, so that old TRS-80 or maybe the HeathKit built by your
Uncle-In-Law or even that venerable Timex-Sinclair may be
among your prized memories. Great! Cherish them. And you
think your Mac is the finest tiling around since anchovies on
pizza? Sure! But there is a wee little problem with all but one
class or type of computer out there: compatibility & standards!
Those Macs, Amigas, Apple II's, Ataris, etc, are potent and very
powerful computers in their own right. But who, besides YOU,
has one? Some, yes, but not many. This is not an intent to offend;
rather to get across the point that it is not possible to cover
everything; and there is one type of computer out there that has
pretty much superceded all others in numbers and standardized
operating procedures: the IBM/clone ! So, you like your old
Trash-80? Good! But we can't help you with it. Dunno anything
about 'em and don't want to and don't have the time to learn.

It's true that the Macintosh, the Amiga and perhaps the Ataris can
do certain tilings better than the IBM/clones. So what? It's a
simple fact that there are more IBM/clones and compatible
software out and around than all the rest of the field combined.
This represents a singular value to the radio hobbyist. Your Mac
just might have the best radio software in the world, but it does the
rest of us no good, nor you, for that matter, when we can't share
that of which we are so proud! The fact is that more people have
IBM/clones than any other. We would waste space here to talk
about the old TRS-DOS computers, but more eyes would brighten
if we talked about IBM/clones. Simple market forces at work here.

Ok, so you're about to buy an IBM/clone computer, but what
specific kind? There is just as much confusion in this single
category as in all the rest combined, for in this class are contained
the PCjr, PC, XT, AT, 386 and 486 machines, which range in
price from nearly free to thousands of dollars. What to do?
Fortunately, the confusion factor is less for the radio hobbyist. It's
easy to suggest what to get and what not to get.

DON'T, whatever you do, get a PCjr, PC or PC/clone! These are
too old and out of date like the CP/M machines of yesteryear.
Instead, focus your attentions on the XT/AT/386/486 or clone/
compatibles. And in the XT/AT class, it's almost impossible to
get a new one, so that's all the better! My XT/clone with a 40-Mb
hard drive cost me $200. Just recently, we acquired a 386SX to
dedicate full time to the BBS, but this was only after an extended
search for an AT/286/clone. Used prices ranged from $250 to
$700, but none had the full power needed by our dedicated BBS.
Yet, all were more than ample for radio hobbying and
miscellaneous household needs. We'll continue with this subject in
future issues, but for the time being let me propose a minimum
standard "system" for casual hobby use: XT, AT or clone (8086 or
80286 microprocessors), with 640-k RAM, 20-40 Mb Hard Drive;
dual floppy disk drives (3.5" & 5.25"), monochrome monitor;

two serial or COM ports and one parallel or printer port Expect
prices to range between $175 to $400, depending on what comes
with the unit. Sheesh, you can frequently find a printer included in
used deals like these. As a benchmark for comparison, our
Cumulus 386SX/16 with 2-Mb RAM, 85-Mb Hard Drive; dual
high density floppy disk drives; two serial ports/1-parallel port and
SVGA color monitor (.28mm dot pitch), MS-DOS 5.0 & Windows
3.1 set us back $950. The major share of that cost was the 85 Mb
hard drive; SVGA color monitor & card and the 2 Mb RAM. A
comparable system in monochrome with 640-K RAM and 20-Mb
hard drive ought not to cost more than $300-$400. A decent Hard
Drive and good color video cost as much or more than the
computer these days! Final advice: if you're not computer literate
but want to try your hand at computing to further your pleasure of
radio, then set a budget of $200-$400 and go for an XT/AT/clone
as described. You can hardly go wrong. Now let's have some
READER ADVICE & QUESTIONS on this subject, whaddya say!

ROLL YOUR OWN SCANNER ANTENNA

a reprint from my article in Monitoring Times, Nov-91: /ED

I don't ordinarily encourage serious communicators to monkey
around in the "roll your own antenna" department, but if you're an
antenna engineer or if antennas are the focus of your Life then
have at it. If you're a typical ham or CB'er, there are better ways to
spend time and money than in conjuring antennas which can be
more expensive and less effective than off-the-shelf market models.
The ham and CB bands are so competitive that every decibel of
gain is needed at times to get the signal "out there". State-of-the-
art has come a long way for ham & CB radio and it makes no sense
to compete with that mega-million $$ antenna industry which has
all the angles and casual discoveries worked out to a science.

It's different for SWL and Scanning where antenna technology is
not so avant-garde. Plenty of room is left for chance discovery and
Saturday development. An industry is emerging for SWL &
scanner antennas, but it doesn't approach the level of that for ham,
CB and commercial radio. SWL'ing and scanning require
broadband antennas though each differs from the other as snakes
and toads. S WL's have it worse because of size requirements.

Thanks to the inverse relationship of dimension to frequency,
scannists can have their cake and eat it, too, with a broadband
antenna and GAIN. When a dipole is fed at some point off-center,
its bandwidth widens appreciably, depending on the offset. Off-
center-fed (OCF) dipoles can be made to cover most of the scanner
bands of interest, from VHF-Lo through 900 MHz, and there will
be a bit of GAIN, maybe 2 dB on some bands. An OCF-dipole is
easy to make with minimal materials and cost, performance of
which compares to market models.maybe better!

Review Fig-2 for a schematic and simplistic approach to the
concoction of an OCF-dipole. You can stop there if you like and
get right to work with a few feet of wire, matching transformer and
coax per Fig-2, or you can ponder the grand idea in Fig-1. Before
you get started, let's briefly cover a little known tidbit about
bandwidth of antennas. As the diameter of an antenna increases
to an appreciable fraction of it's length, the bandwidth increases!
This applies especially to VHF/UHF dipoles. So in Fig-1, we'll not

The "WORLD SCANNER REPORT" (c) 1991-2; V2N8: September, 1992; Page 4

only offset the feed point from center to yield a wider band of
operation, but we'll also use 3/4" copper water pipe to create
substantial diameter for greater bandwidth without sacrificing
GAIN or performance. One beauty of this project is that you can
follow my directions exactly or you can deviate for possibly
superior results. For example, you needn't stop at 3/4" copper; why
not 1-inch? I saw fittings for 1-1/2" and 2"copper pipe at a
hardware store, so go for the gusto if you can find the materials.

Why stop there? Several coffee cans soldered end-to-end or even
stove pipes could be pressed into service for larger diameters! The
endless possibilities can't be covered in the meager space here, so
Figs 1 and 2 will suffice to convey the principles. You can let your
imagination and ingenuity run amok from there. If you are not
into "rolling your own", try the Grove Omni, a classic example of
an OFC-dipole! Thanks to Darwin Teague of Indiana, for the
idea of copper pipe for this month's project. Now here's what you
need to know. Fig-2 shows the principles and basics of an OCF
dipole. The two elements must not touch; the matching
transformer maximizes energy transfer from antenna to coax. The
length of (A) must NOT be an even multiple of (B). For example,
(B) is 18"; so (A) cannot be 36", 54", 72" or 90". I selected 48" as
a compromise between the no-no points and my preferences for
VHF-hi and UHF. You could make (A) equal to 63" or even 81" if
VHF-lo is your greater interest. Use low loss RG-6 coax, though
RG-59 will do if you insist. These are the few rules for success
with an OCF-dipole.

Now let's review Fig-1 for a practical application and a Class Act!
Key notes of Fig-1 include 3/4" copper water pipe for the elements
and support brace to the mast. PVC tee fitting (El) is an insulated
holder for the antenna (A & B) and a mount bracket for brace (C).
Element (A) passes completely through (El), and is permanently
affixed to (El) with epoxy, silicone rubber, hot glue or a screw.
(E2) is primarily an insulator and a holder for the two elements, (A
& B), but it also serves to accommodate a weatherproof housing
(G) for the TV matching transformer (J). After the matching
transformer is placed inside (G) and the 300 ohm wires are poked
through the two holes (H), seal all openings with epoxy, silicone
rubber or hot glue. Likewise, after (A, B & G) are inserted into
(E2), fix them in place with an adhesive.

Placement of (El) is not critical because it only holds the antenna.
The closer to (E2), the better, but 8" to 12" spacing between (El &
E2) is a good compromise for balance, appearance and function.
Coax cable (L) is routed straight away from the antenna (A & B);
NOT parallel, to a secure spot on the mast or tower at (F). NOTE
that 3/4" PVC fittings do not exactly mate with 3/4" copper. The
outer diameter of 3/4" copper pipe is between 13/16" and 7/8", so
the PVC will have to be "reamed" a little for a good fit. A
7/8"flared-type wood boring bit works fine. For (El), insert the
bit, shaft first, through the PVC tee and then into a drill chuck.
Ream the length of (El) for (A) by pulling the rotating bit all the
way through in lieu of normal pushing. You can also use the
"pull" technique to partially ream (E2) at each end for (A & B), but
obviously, the "push" technique is required at (El) for (C). (E2)
need not be reamed for (G) because PVC fits perfectly! Brace (C)
need not be exactly 36" but if less, the antenna's performance can
be affected by a metal tower or mast. Longer is better, but copper
bends with weight and leverage, so 36" is a good compromise.

The 300 ohm output wires (H) must be solidly connected to (A &
B); solder these leads to (A & B) or put spade lugs on the wire ends
and use sheet metal screws to secure them to the copper with star
washers between the copper and lug and between lug and screw
head. Weather-seal all solder joints or screw heads with silicone
rubber after connection. Weather-seal with silicone rubber all
entry/exit openings of the copper and PVC. Prior to assembling
the antenna, polish all surfaces of the copper with steel-wool to a
bright shiny luster. Remove fingerprints and smears, and spray
ALL exterior surfaces with several coats of acrylic or lacquer, clear
if you want attention and admiration; white or baby-blue for a
lesser invasion of the skyline; or red to infuriate neighbors. The
OCF-dipole is shown with the long element on top. It's better that
way but if you disagree then put the short side up. See if I care;
just don't forget to reverse the relative positions of (El & E2),
because the coax must be BELOW the support brace (C). Please
let me know of your successes or failures with this project and
about other innovative scanner antenna developments. 73A)c

MFGRS OF ANTENNAS FOR SCANNERS

ANTENNA SPECIALISTS COMPANY
30500 BRUCE INDUSTRIAL PKWY

CLEVELAND, OH 44139.3996 216-349-8400

BARKER & WILLIAMSON
10 CANAL ST

BRISTOL, PA 19007 215-788-5581

CENTURION INTERNATIONAL, INC.

PO BOX 82846

LINCOLN, NE 68501.2846 402-467-4491

CHANNEL MASTER/DIV AVNET
PO BOX 1416

SMITHFIELD, NC 27577 919-934-9711

DYNASCAN CORPORATION
6460 W. CORTLAND

CHICAGO, IL 60635 312-889-8870 & 800-262-7222

FIRESTIK ANTENNA COMPANY
2614 E. ADAMS

PHOENIX, AZ 85034 800-528-8113

GROVE ENTERPRISES, INC
140 DOG BRANCH RD

BRASSTOWN, NC 28902 704-837-9200

ICI ACTIVE ANTENNA SYSTEMS
4521 CAMPUS DRIVE; #113

IRVINE, CA 92715 714-720-8159

ICOM AMERICA, INC.

2112- 116th NE

BELL VIE W, W A 98004 206-454-7619

ICOM CANADA, INC.

3071 - #5 ROAD

RICHMOND, BC CANADA V6X 2T4

The "WORLD SCANNER REPORT" (c) 1991-2; V2N8: September, 1992; Page 5

Figure 1: HIGH PERFORMANCE OCF DIPOLE

FIGURE 1; SCANNER ANTENNA PLANS

A Copper water pipet 3/4"D x 48"L? VHF & (JHF-Lo element?
does not touch B or C

B Copper water pipet 3/4"D x 1B"Lt Utf-Lo & Hi elementj
does not touch A or C

C Copper water pipet 3/4 B D x 36"L? support brace to mast
or towert does not touch A or Bj should be grounded.

0 Copper pipe capsj 3/4"0? soldered or glued to A 4 B

El PVC-tee? 3/4"D» hot glued or epoxied to A which passes
completely thru. Support brace for antenna.

E2 PUC-teet 3/4"D? Insulator 4 holder for A 4 B which must
not touch each other.

F Holes for U-bolt mount to mast or tower legt use two

grippers from Radio Shack 15-826 and one 15-830 or equiv

G PVC-pipe, 3/4"D x 3"L, approxt holds 300 ohm-75 ctw
matching transformer? sealed for weatherproofing

H Wires? 14-18ga to 300-ohm output of matching transformer
fed thru sealed holes drilled or melted in PVC-pipe G

i n

TO THE
' SCANNER

FIGURE 2: OCF DIPOLE SCHEMATIC DIAGRAM

A Electrical conductor? wire/pipe/etc? 48"l approx? must not touch B
0 Electrical corrector? wire/pipe/etc? 1B"l approx? must not touch A

C 300 ohm-1o-75 ohm TV-matching transformer? outdoor? Radio Shack
115-1140, 115-1143 or equivalent

0 300-ohm flat lead or wire output from C

E 75-ohm Type F-female input to C

F Type F Connector? gold plated? for RG-6 coax? Radio Shack #278-225 or
equivalent

G RG-6 Coax? Radio Shack #278-1324 or equiv

f f

7s] n

® 0

TO THf
S

NOTES CONTINUED FR0P1 ABOVE

I Sheet metal screws with star washers to connect
300 ohm output wires to A 4 B. Use spade lugs
on ends of wires under screws.

J 300 ohm-to-75 ohm TV-matching transformer? Radio
Shack #15-1140, 15-1143 or equivalent
K Type F Connector? gold plated? for RG-6 coax?

Radio Shack #278-225 or equivalent
L RG-6 Coax? Radio Shack #278-1324 or equiv

SCANNER ANTENNA MANUFACTURERS

LARSON ANTENNAS
11611 NE 50th AVE / PO BOX 1799

VANCOUVER, WA 98668

800-426-1656 & 206-573-2722

CAN THE READERS HELP?

Billy Johnson, Reston, VA, needs a schematic diagram on an older
800 MHz converter, the Critique 800, that may have been popular
a few years ago. That failing, he would appreciate information on
the whereabouts of the manufacturer, a company called Critique
Electronics, formerly of Downer's Grove, IL. Apparently they are
no longer in that vicinity. Please respond to the M WSR". /ED

AN LED BLOCK INDICATOR FOR
EXTENDED MEMORY MODIFICATIONS

By: Professor Peabody

NEW-TRONICS ANTENNA CORP
ONE NEW-TRONICS PL

MINERAL WELLS, TX 76067 817-325-1386

RF LIMITED
PO BOX 1124

ISSAQUAH, WA 98027 206-392-0399 & FAX: 206-392-0419

RUSSELL INDUSTRIES, INC.

PO BOX 508; 3000 LAWSON BLVD

OCEANSIDE, NY 11572 516-536-5000

WINEGARD COMPANY

3000 KIRKWOOD STREET/PO BOX 1007

BURLINGTON, IA 52601.1007 319-753-0121

WINTENNA, INC
911 AMITY RD

ANDERSON, SC 29621 803-261-3965

Yo Scannerfans! I've received requests for a seven segment display
for the KeyBoard Memory Block Controller circuit that appears in
the SCANNER MODIFICATION HANDBOOK , Vol-2. So here
is a simple display circuit that can best be described as a binary to
BCD decoder that can count up to 19 but for our purposes will
count from zero to fifteen. The non inverted outputs from the 4060
counter are connected to the 4514 decoder and will cause 1 output
to go high depending on the binary number. The outputs then go
to a diode matrix similar to the FATMAN'S to produce a code that
is presented to a 74LS47 decoder driver. This guy makes the 7-seg
unit display lite up with a 0-9 sequence with this input from the
4060 and then in combination with the tens digit will produce a
10-15 when this is inputted from the 4060. Of course, the tens
digit is off for 0-9.

If you use two 7-seg displays, and you probably will, then use the k
and c segments for the 10's digit. The 7-seg LED’s are common
anode types which are available at Radio Shaft. The two 74HC04
inverters used for the tens digit can be reclaimed from the 2 unused
inverters from the original KMBC circuit. Yes, I agree with you

The "WORLD SCANNER REPORT" (c) 1991-2; V2N8: September, 1992; Page 6

7-SEG LED BLOCK INDICATOR FOR KEYBOARD MEMORY BLOCK CONTROLLER (mod-23)

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The "WORLD SCANNER REPORT" (c) 1991-2; V2N8: September, 1992; Page 7

STREET;.

PHONE:!,._ J _

TYPE OF SCANNERS:

Career or
Profession:

| Any Single Copy, your choice
J 1991 (1 st Y ear, Jan-Nov/Dec)

| 1992 (3rd 6-mo, Jan-May/Jun)
J 1991-2 (All die above)

| WSR CUR R ENT SUBSC RI P
J Half Year
| One Year

Check M.O. Visa MasterCard COD (Add $7.50)

METHOD OF Check M.O. Visa \

PAYMENT » _ _ _

Credit Card

Acc’t No:_-_

Name of

Issuing Bank_

Signature Required (lor credit card purchases)

Amount Enclosed
$

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$_

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Date:_

USA$$ Am oun ts

1 ea $ 4.00 $_

10 ea $23.00 $_

5 ea $15.00 $_

15 ea $35.00 $_

ONLY

5 ea $15.00 $_

10 ea $25.00 $_

20 ea $45.00 $_

HOBBY RADIO BUYER'S DIRECTORY $14.95 ppd surf $_

SCANNER MOD HNDBK, Vol-1: $17.95 + $4.00 S&H $_

SCANNER MOD HNDBK, Vol-2: $17.95 + $4.00 S&H $_

HB-232 Interface Kit: $169.95 + $5 S&H; Foreign $10 S&H $_

* Canada US$5 S&H; Other Foreign US$7 S&H; extra for Air Mail
| CALIF RESIDENTS ADD 7.75% Sales Tax to ALL purchases! $

US FUNDS PAYABLE TO: COMMTRONICS ENGINEERING TOTAL: $_

that using a 4514 decoder and a bunch of diodes to make a binary
to BCD converter is a pain but there used to be a chip, a 74185
converter that was perfect for the job and you could cascade them
to make a converter as wide as the Mississippi River, but alas, it is
discontinued and very hard to find. Because I could not find tills
chip, there is no way I would let you folks take on the task of
fruitlessly hunting for these puppies yourself. So I came up with
this scheme to get a 0-15 display for the standard 16 Block
memory crowd. This circuit can be expanded further for up to 64
Blocks of memory but it will get quite large and I'm not sure there's
a big calling for it. The 680 ohm resistors make for a plenty bright
display at most lighting levels, but if your scanner is in a brightly
lit room, you can drop the values to 470 ohms. The whole circuit
can be put in one of those little project boxes that RS sells with the
wires coming out of the antenna hole in the top cover and then
VELCRO the box to the top cover so it can be removed at a later
date. A small connector can be put on the wires inside the scanner
so total removal of the cover can be done easily. That's it for now
and keep those scanners hummin! 73/Professor Peabody

READER REPORT ON THE AIE MODEL TCF-4

From Alan Parlato . NY : There were problems with AIE's selection
of the RJ-45 jack. When the plug was inserted, the pins protruded
from the rear, grounding all 8 pins of the jack to the PRO-2006.
After I shortened the pins with a pair of side-cutters and insulated
the rear of the jack from the radio, the TCF-4 powered up ok so I
reinstalled the jack just fine. The next problem was that the TCF-4
is apparently not compatible with the 16 MHz clock mod in the
2006. The unit seemed to work ok in the READ mode, although
the squelch was a little sluggish. I did manage to log quite a few
PL tones in the USE mode. The TCF-4 was unable to track the
channels coming from the Display Driver, so this feature was
useless. Radio and TCF-4 are now at AIE's facility in South
Carolina. Tony at AIE needs to analyze the data stream from the
16 MHz 2006 and then can probably reprogram the TCF-4 to work
with it. Hope to hear from him soon. Tony says they are working
on a Motorola "Trunk Tracker" system to be used with the 2006.

The HB-232 will be a great addition indeed. I hope that a version
will be available for a 16 MHz PRO-2006. I guess this is
somewhat related to the TCF-4 problem. Regards. .../Alan

EDITOR'S REPLY: Thanks for the input, Alan. Pm delighted
that you brought it up because I have been wanting to mention
AIE’s Model TCF-4 to the readers for some time now. AIE was
supposed to send us an evaluation unit but nothing received thus
far. We installed one complete unit months ago for a customer
who had to have it right away which left little opportunity for a full
evaluation. Sorry to learn yours had difficulties, but if I know
Tony there at AIE, I’m sure he’s made it right by now. For those
who aren’t yet aware, the AIE Model TCF-4 is a full-featured,
powerful CTCSS/PL ToneFinder and Memory Storage unit for the
PRO-2004/5/6. AIE also makes a line of Tone Finders for other
scanners, including the Uniden BC-760/950XLT and perhaps
others. For more info: AIE; 141 Granite St; Batesburg, SC 29006
(803) 532-9256

Your observed problem of the TCF-4 not working with a speeded
up PRO-2006 is not at all strange. In fact, the HB-232 Scanner/
Computer Interface will not work at 16 MHz. Key Research Co’s
SEARCH & STORE modules won’t work with speeded up PRO -
2004’s & 2005’s, either. There are a number of factors underlying
this phenomenon to which I will dedicate a forthcoming article,
perhaps. For now, warp speeders have to understand that TIMING
is an all-important commodity in digital electronics. Anything
hung on the scanner’s keyboard which is sampled by the CPU at a
designated rate may be degraded or absorb so much of that
sampling signal as to stop the scanner altogether. So much is
dependent on TIMING that when the scanner runs at one speed
and something else runs at another, there is a good chance that
the two won’t work well together. Remember, the designers have
no idea of what wonderful hacks we will come up with; nor do they
take this into consideration. The fact that we got the HB-232 to
work with the stock PRO-2006 and speeded up 2004’s & 2005’s is
quite an accomplishment in its own right. Faster still is out of the
question for the time being. Above 25-ch/sec, speed isn’t all that
gosh-awful important anyway. Slow down and smell the coffee!

The "WORLD SCANNER REPORT" (c) 1991-2; V2N8: September, 1992; Page 8

COMMTRONICS ENGINEERING' s
” WORLD SCANNER REPORT 9
PO BOX 262478
SAN DIEGO, CA 92196-2478

920830V2N8P8

IN THIS ISSUE _ issm-1061-9240 _ FIRST CLASS MAIL

+ The Year of the Interface Continues: HB-232 Released for Charley Testing
+ Last Chance to Get the HB-232 Interface at a discount
+ SHERLOCK ; a 3rd Party Enhancement Program for HB-232 Now Available!

+ Time to Think about Renewing! MasterCard & Visa Now Accepted
+ Access to the Hertzian Intercept BBS Improved; better hours
+ A New Column; THE COMPUTER CORNER; Intro to the IBM & clones
+ Roll Your Own High Performance Olf-Center-Fed Dipole Scanner Antenna!

+ Scanner Antenna Manufacturers; a big list!

+ An LED Block Indicator for PRO-2004/5/6 Extended Memory Modifications
+ A Reader Needs Help! Another Reader Reports on the AIE TCF-4; MORE!